Five revelations from Ricky Hatton’s inquest – reminiscence loss, cocaine and ‘finest place in years’

Ricky Hatton’s heartbroken family gathered at South Manchester Coroners’ Court in Stockport to hear the final details surrounding the boxing great’s death as a number of new details emerged

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Ricky Hatton’s inquest has brought clarity to the tragic circumstances of the boxing great’s death. The sporting superstar was found dead at his home in Hyde, Greater Manchester on September 14 last year.

A provisional cause of death of “hanging” was given at a pre-inquest hearing in October last year. Today, that ruling was confirmed at at South Manchester Coroners’ Court in Stockport following a full examination.

Hatton was found “unresponsive” in the games room of his home by his manager, Paul Speak, on the morning of Sunday, September 14. The pugilist was last seen by his family just two days before, when he appeared “well”.

After Hatton’s death, tributes were paid across Britain and around the globe to one of the greatest ever boxers. And thousands lined the streets of Tameside and Manchester to pay tribute to ‘The Hitman’ during his funeral procession.

Here are all the tragic details from the inquest:

Cause of death confirmed

The cause of death was confirmed when the inquest heard a pathologist recorded a cause of death as “hanging”. A statement from pathologist Dr Neil Papworth detailed the injuries found.

He concluded they were “consistent with hanging” as he added there was “no evidence to suggest suspicious circumstances” in the death.

Coroner Alison Mutch added: “Richard John Hatton died having suspended himself from a ligature. (His) intention remains unclear as he was under the influence of alcohol and a neurological post-mortem found evidence of CTE.”

Cocaine use and alcohol in system

The inquest heard a doctor completed a toxicological report after receiving samples of blood and urine. Some 212mg of ethanol per decilitre of blood, and 253mg of ethanol per declitre of urine, were found in Hatton’s system, the court heard.

These findings were “consistent with alcohol intoxication” at the time of death, according to the doctor, whose statement was read out. It was also considered “likely” that alcohol was still being absorbed at the time, the inquest was told.

The level of alcohol in his system was the equivalent of being twice the legal drink-drive limit, the court heard.

The inquest also heard there was “evidence of prior cocaine use”. The doctor, however, went on to say that there was no evidence that cocaine was consumed in the hours before his death.

There was also evidence of “cannabinoids” in Hatton’s system, the court heard.

Found in games room

Det Sgt Helen Grigalis told the hearing that Hatton’s manager, Paul Speak, had called at his house around 6.30am on the Sunday morning of September 14th, but got no reply.

After letting himself in with his own key, he found the boxer unresponsive in an upstairs games room. Hatton was fully dressed, and on the pool table was an empty bottle of wine and a half-full glass of wine on the bar. The lights were off but music was playing from a TV.

No notes were found. Police were called along with an ambulance who confirmed the death, but could not say when Hatton had died. The house was secure with no signs of a disturbance.

Around 6pm on Friday, September 12, Hatton had taken both his daughters and granddaughters out for a meal, returning home at 7.55pm. He sent a message to a friend at 8.05pm and his phone last unlocked at 12.02 early on the Saturday morning with no further phone use.

‘Best place in years’ and death ‘not premeditated’

In a statement read out to the court, Ricky Hatton’s son Campbell said his father was “very happy, always very laid back, except when it came to sport. He lived his life in and out of the ring at a hundred per cent and as he always said he never regretted it”.

He said his father was “fearless”, but had problems with his mental health, and was “always generous with people around him”. He had mental health “battles” and alcohol issues, and went into the Priory, the inquest heard.

“We felt he had been in the best place he had been in for years,” his son added.

Hatton’s family also believed his death “wasn’t premeditated” as the boxer had planned a trip to Dubai and then to Thailand, which he was excited about, his son told the court in a heartfelt statement.

Memory loss

Campbell told the court there was a “decline” in his father’s “short-term memory” over recent years. He would forget conversations, including one on the Friday evening before his death, the inquest heard

He sometimes showed “how confused and forgetful he could be”, Campbell said. The comments from Hatton’s family were backed up by the findings of the pathologist Dr Neil Papworth.

The court heard that samples of Hatton’s brain were analysed. While “no macroscopic abnormalities” were identified, there was a “degree of chronic neuronal loss which is the loss of nerve cells” in the “microscopic” analysis of the brain, according to Dr Papworth.

The doctor said he found evidence of Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) although this was at the “milder end of the spectrum of this disease”.

He noted that as a boxer Mr Hatton “received repeated blows to his head” over his career but he said it was “not possible” to determine the process by which Mr Hatton was affected by CTE.

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